Chapter 5 · Shloka 3— The Yoga of Renunciation of Action

jñeyaḥ sa nitya-sannyāsī yo na dveṣhṭi na kāṅkṣhati nirdvandvo hi mahā-bāho sukhaṁ bandhāt pramuchyate

jñeyaḥ

— should be considered

saḥ

— that person

nitya

— always

sanyāsī

— practising renunciation

yaḥ

— who

na

— never

dveṣhṭi

— hate

na

— nor

kāṅkṣhati

— desire

nirdvandvaḥ

— free from all dualities

hi

— certainly

mahā-bāho

— mighty-armed one

sukham

— easily

bandhāt

— from bondage

pramuchyate

— is liberated

"Jneyah sa nitya-sannyasi yo na dveshti na kankhati, nirdvandvo hi maha-baho sukham bandhat pramucyate." — One who neither hates nor desires should be known as the eternal renunciant; free from dualities, O mighty-armed, that one is easily liberated from bondage. This verse is the Gita's redefinition of sannyasa. The true renunciant is not identified by what they wear, where they live, or what activities they undertake — but by the inner quality of their orientation: neither aversion (dvesha) nor craving (kanksha). 'Nitya-sannyasi' — eternal renunciant — is significant: this is not a phase or role one adopts but an inner state of being free from the push-pull of dualities. Shankaracharya emphasizes that the duality (dvandva) being transcended is specifically the pair of attraction and aversion — the primal movements of the mind that color every experience with 'I want this' or 'I hate that.' When these movements settle, the person remains engaged and active but without the reactive coloring that creates karma. Actions are no longer preceded by craving and followed by grasping; they arise from a center of clear perception and return to it. This is the freedom ('sukham... pramucyate') that comes easily — not through strenuous effort but through the natural release that follows when the grasping mechanism loses its hold. This verse is significant for practitioners: the Gita is saying that the inner renunciation of dvesha and kanksha is more definitive than any external renunciation. A monk with strong preferences and aversions is less a sannyasi than a householder who has genuinely outgrown craving and aversion.

The definition of a true renunciant has nothing to do with robes or monasteries. It's the inner state of not craving and not hating — neither pulled toward what you want nor pushing away what you don't want. This is the state of someone whose perception is no longer systematically distorted by desire and aversion. In that state, actions become accurate responses to reality rather than reactions to ego-need. And liberation comes 'easily' (sukham) — not through gritting your teeth but through the natural lightness that comes when grasping stops.

Real renunciation isn't about clothes or location — it's about inner state. The eternal renunciant is someone who neither craves nor hates. Not someone who wants nothing (toxic detachment) but someone who's no longer systematically controlled by wanting and not-wanting. That's when perception gets clear and actions become accurate. And the liberation is EASY — it's the natural lightness of letting go, not more straining.

Krishna gives a surprise answer: a TRUE renunciant is someone who doesn't strongly crave things OR strongly hate things — no matter where they live! A monk who still craves and hates is less free than a working person who has found peace inside. The real freedom is in the heart, not in what clothes you wear.